Winter Village at Bryant Park

Every year Winter Village sponsored by Bank of America opens at Bryant Park in October. This year the holiday shops and the ice skating rink opened October 28th. We made a quick stop in New York City, and while I can honestly say I thought the city was overrated, I did enjoy the Winter Village.

We almost missed it because we were in a hurry to leave the city (too many people), but I saw a cute park and a coffee shop, so we stopped for something warm to drink. Walking up the steps into the park I quickly decided we were going to spend some time meandering and shopping, and Drew, of course, agreed.

The holiday shops which operate this year till January 2nd were full of unique, handmade gifts along with unique apparel and décor. The shops are open Monday – Friday 11 am – 8 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am – 8 pm. I highly suggest grabbing a hot chocolate or a coffee and browsing the shops if you are wanting a gift that stands out among the rest.

The centerpiece of the park is a massive 17,000 square foot outdoor ice skating rink. The rink is open daily 8 am – 10 pm through March 4th. Admission to the rink is free and skate rentals are $20. If you have your own skates, they do also offer sharpening for $20. I did not personally join the fun in the rink only because I had a 7 hour flight to Dublin coming up and I didn’t want to fall on my behind and have it be sore for the whole flight, but we did enjoy watching everyone have fun.

Le Carrousel offers rides to French cabaret music for $3, test your Ping Pong skills, or head up to the Overlook to warm up and enjoy a selection of games, and art supplies while you have some coffee and let your fingers and toes defrost.

Winter Village also has some great events that are upcoming (and also some that have already past). Most notably is Santa’s Corner which runs from December 16 – 23 from 1 pm – 3 pm. This is where families can come out and meet Santa and his helpers and receive a free holiday photo. Some of the other events include Storytime, Exerskate, College Skate Nights and Boot Camp. To learn more about the events check out their website.

The Winter Village was beautiful and while it’s not enough to get me back to the city, it gave me something wonderful to talk about when I mention our trip to New York City(besides the train ride to the city).